Small Business Resources
As a small business owner I wish I found somewhere that has various resource options for me to choose from rather than spending countless hours on trial and error.
That’s why I have put together a list of resources to help you be more productive and make your life a bit simpler when trying to manage different aspects of your business. All these programs and apps on this page I have used myself at some point in my business and has helped me get to where I am today.
Most of these programs are free but do have paid options.
You will also find some links to other websites where you can find information especially if you are just starting a business.
Communication
Gmail
Integrates with most email software and is also available across all your devices.
Skype
Perfect for hosting online meetings or just catching up with your clients.
Google Hangouts
Free and great for collaborating with colleagues.
Call Track
Download this app onto your mobile phone and set up a new google calandar and sync the two. When making or receiving a call it will be added to the calandar with date, time and duration and add your notes to keep track of calls made to clients.
Youcanbook.me
This is fantastic tool that I came across. Perfect for some trade professionals giving them the ability to accept online bookings. Just intergrates and syncs with your gmail calendar.
projects & tasks
Asana
The perfect tool for small businesses without costing anything.
This program is a great task/collaborating program which has an app available on PC and Andoid (with widgets). As long as the person you want to collaborate with has an account (free) you can add tasks to share with that person and communicate with notes on that task. Saves emailing back and forth. The great feature that I find with this program is that you can either view tasks in list form or as a calander and the search function is easy to use to find completed tasks.
Tick Tick
This program has the best of both worlds with a list view as well as a calendar view (weekly/monthly). This task list is very similar to Wunderlist but with the missing features that I was after. Make multiple folders and sub-lists. Some of these features you will need to upgrade to the paid version to receive but for a small fee of a couple of dollars it is worth it.
Wunderlist
Great task/collaborating app available on PC and Andoid (with widgets). As long as the person you want to collaborate with has an account (free) you can add tasks to share with that person and communicate with notes on that task. Saves emailing back and forth.
ToDoList
Along the same lines as Task List Guru however ToDoList gives you a far more complex task list with an easier to use interface. Great for your productivity and keeping you on track. With reminders, sticky notes, customizable columns and has the ability have multiple lists open at one time. The features offered are too many to list.
Task List Guru
Allows you to keep a list with detailed notes and set reminders. Has an easy to use and view interface.
Google Keep
A basic note taking app which is available on Android & Chrome. Syncs automatically, ability to set reminders, share with others.
cloud storage
Dropbox
For cloud storage & sharing files with dropbox and non-dropbox users. Great for sending/accepting large files and you can also get the app to have on your smartphone too.
Google Drive
Can be used for cloud storage or to share files. Available across your devices.
time tracking
Toggl
Free cloud program which allows you to track you time, tasks and customers. Because it is internet based you can access it on your Android mobile, tablet or from any computer. Provides you with graphs and has the ability to export to csv for printing. Also integrates with various other programs including Asana and Wunderlist so you can track your time directly from your task list.
Grindstone
This free program is a great free option for time tracking. It helps you keep track of where your time is spent, has the ability to add different tasks, clients etc. Plus produces simple timesheets and summaries.
accounting
Wave Apps
Free and simple accounting software. Issue invoices, send reminders, add payments and also create reports. It allows you to accept credit card payments online when integrated with Stripe. Also available Wave Receipts which can be used in conjunction with Wave Accounting.
social media
Feedly
A Content Curators dream. This program is something I use daily to manage my own and my clients social media with a constant flow of content & easy to manage boards to group articles.
Similar to Feedly Pocket gives you some recommended articles however like the name suggest it’s more for saving and storing articles and web pages for later review.
Canva
Great for making your posts look great on Social Media or your website. Choose from over 8000 free and paid templates.
If you are struggling to find content Pinterest is a valuable resource to help you and it’s free. From tips, tricks, quotes, articles and so much more.
LinkedIn is considered by many the ‘professional Facebook’. With over 500 million users it is definitely one of the platforms you should be utilizing for your business. If you are looking at making connections and building your network then this is the platform for it, unlike Facebook where if you want to build a rapport with someone you would have to friend them as your personal profile.
LinkedIn is kind of like an online resume but don’t get confused and display your profile like one. You need to make sure you are speaking to your audience.
website analytics
Statcounter
Free program that allows you to keep track of visitors to your website.
Rank Tracker
This is a free program that you can enter your keywords and monitor your website rankings. It gives you a pretty comprehensive overview and checks the major search engines Google, Yahoo and Bing.
other small business resources
Small Business Development Corporation – https://www.smallbusiness.wa.gov.au/
Consumer Protection – https://www.commerce.wa.gov.au/consumer-protection
ATO – https://www.ato.gov.au/
Australia.gov.au – https://www.business.gov.au/
ASIC – http://asic.gov.au/